I love science fiction and fantasy, always have, always will. As a little girl growing up in Cuba, sci-fi/fantasy was my window into the world of the "what ifs." Regardless of what was happening around me in the turbulent years after Castro came into power, my voracious sci-fi/fantasy reading brought a great measure of peace to that 10 year old girl.

On August 29-September 2, 2002, the WSFS held its 60th World Science Fiction Convention in San José, California, appropriately calling it ConJosé. The 2002 Hugo Awards were given at this gathering. The speech Tad Williams gave as part of his duties as Toastmaster for the ConJosé Hugo Award ceremony is a joy to read. "Dreaming forward" is one of the greatest gifts sci-fi writers [and I would include fantasy writers here as well] can give the world at large. It was the gift I received as a little girl in Cuba.